The baby lay in a basket on the rocky creek bank.
How in the world had Lainie known? Jake grabbed her hand just as she started for the kicking, wailing bundle.
“Wait. Let me have a look around first, Lainie. This is too peculiar to be accidental.”
She bit her lip. “He’s cold.”
“I know. But just give me five minutes—”
“Jake, he needs us. We can’t wait. He’s so cold and hungry—”
She broke away from him, running toward the baby.
Chapter 5
“Dammit!”
Jake followed, arriving as she knelt, looking down at the baby’s red face.
She picked the child up and held it close, wrapping her cloak tightly about both of them. “You poor dear,” she murmured. “Let’s get you out of the cold and find something for you to eat.”
Jake couldn’t stop himself from putting his hand out and touching the baby’s cheek. He was rewarded by a sleepy, grateful look, and the last piece of his heart he’d tried to keep for himself was not his any longer. What hadn’t already been taken by Lainie now belonged to this baby.
“Will you get the basket, Jake?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah—sure.” He tore his gaze away from the baby and strode over to pick up the basket from the cold ground.
There was no sign of anyone around. Jake’s anger blossomed like Chinese fireworks in his chest. Who could have done something like this—and why?
Leaving an infant out in the elements to perish from cold and hunger was unbelievably cruel. The other thoughts of how the child might have met his end were too horrible to think on…dinner for some wild animal…Jake’s stomach flipped at that gruesome idea, and he stopped his runaway thoughts.
“Let’s get out of here,” he muttered, re-joining Lainie. He put his arm around her protectively. “I never want to see this place again.”
“Me, either.” She shuddered, hurrying ahead of him where there wasn’t room for them to walk abreast of one another.
Unerringly, she found her way back out to the road, just a few feet from where Jake had left the carriage.
“Can you—”
She nodded. “I can manage,” she said quickly.
Jake jumped up into the seat and reached to give her a hand up as she tried to climb in. He settled the basket on the floor between their feet.
Lainie landed heavily beside Jake, leaning against him, holding the baby securely.
He put his arm around her, steadying her, and drawing her closer to him.
The baby had stopped crying and was nuzzling close to Lainie, looking for a breast.
Her face turned crimson at the sucking sounds. She glanced up at Jake to see if he noticed.
He laughed aloud. “Better get used to it. “You’ll be having your own—” He broke off, the smile evaporating at his own thoughts. He finished with “—one of these days.”
And it might be sooner than she thought. He sighed. A wedding was in his precarious future, whether he liked it or not, it seemed.
But, the more he thought about it, the more the idea suited him. Especially now that they had a baby to take care of.
Well, Lainie couldn’t take care of a baby on her own! What else could he do?
But she hadn’t asked him to help, had she?
“We’ll have to make a decision—” he began.
“I don’t want you to feel—” she said at the same time.
“You go first,” Jake said quickly.
She gave him a smile. “Chicken.”
He grinned. “Yep.” He sobered. “Be patient with me. Emotions are hard for me.”
She moved her hand to his waist, leaning close to him for his warmth. “Jake, I don’t want you to—to think you have no choice. And I fear that’s what you must be feeling.” She glanced down at the baby. “He won’t make a difference to you—at least, I hope you wouldn’t believe—”
“Lainie—” He couldn’t let her continue. She was doing her best to let him know she didn’t intend to hold him bound to her for any reason but love.
And there was no other reason, in the world, for either of them, right now.
“I love you.” Somehow, it was easier to say when she was leaning her head next to his heart, and he wasn’t looking at her. Feeling her soft curves against the hard planes of his side, the movements of the child she held so tenderly, brought out a protectiveness inside him he’d never known.
She gasped softly. And then, she began to cry.
“Lainie, don’t, sweetheart.”
“I’m sorry,” she sniffed. “I’ve waited to hear you say that—”
He shook his head. “I know. And I’m not sure why it was so difficult for me. But now—I think it’ll be easier.” He smiled and dropped a kiss on top of her head.
She laughed softly. “I love you, too, Jake. And that wasn’t hard for me to say at all.”
And that, he decided, was the sweetest phrase he’d ever heard.
****
The circus encampment lay just ahead. Lainie’s heart thumped wildly as it came into view, with all its brightly-colored wagons and the smell of animals, even on the winter wind.
She had been more anxious than she realized about seeing her mother and everyone else again.
As they drove into the encampment, they were greeted by only the few people who happened to be outside. Most were safely ensconced in the warmth of their brightly-painted wagons.
Lainie pointed out the wagon she and her mother had shared, smaller than many of the others, and Jake headed for it.
It was set up near the end of the row. Jake pulled the reins up, stopping in front of it and putting on the brake as Lainie turned to try to get down.
“Wait,” he said sternly. “Let me help you, Lainie.”
She had to admit, she was glad to have his solid presence beside her. He reached up and lifted her down easily, and suddenly, she was reluctant to go inside the small wagon…and back to the past.
As if he sensed it, he patted her shoulder. “Come on. We won’t stay long.”
****
Lainie drew back as her mother unbolted the door from the inside and opened it. Zelda’s face registered surprise, then she smiled widely and reached to hug her daughter. “Come in! Get out of the cold!”
Gratefully, Lainie stepped inside, stooping low to enter.
Jake followed, his hand never leaving the small of her back. Oh, how relieved she was to have his steadying presence beside her. She couldn’t shake her feeling of trepidation.
“Mama! I’m so glad—”
“A baby?” Zelda the Great looked up into Lainie’s face. “Where did it come from?” There was the smallest hint of disdain in her tone.
“He was deserted in the forest. We found him.”
Zelda shrank away. “A changeling! You must take it back!”
“Never!” The word was out of Lainie’s mouth before she even thought. “He’s mine, now, Mama!”
“It could be the spawn of the devil, Lainie. You must take it back!”
“Mama, this is a sweet, innocent baby. He’s hungry. Do you have milk?”
Zelda drew herself up, barring Lainie from moving farther into the wagon. “No. I have none.”
Lainie knew better. Her mother always kept fresh milk.
“I see. Well, Mama, we won’t be able to stay long, then. I must find food for him soon.”
“Who is this?” Zelda glanced at Jake.
Jake nodded grimly. “Jake Diamond, ma’am. Lainie and I are engaged.”
Zelda gave a derisive snort. “And I supposed you’re willing to take on this—this brat? My daughter’s changeling baby?”
Jake gave her a steely-eyed look that would have sent hardened criminals scrambling. “Yes. I am.”
She was somewhat taken aback, but after a moment, Zelda peered closely at Jake. “Lainie was always headstrong. Good luck to you.”
“I love your daughter, Mrs. Barrett. Very much.”
&nb
sp; Zelda nodded again. “Yes. I know. Has Lainie told you she comes from a long line of witches? She has no powers of her own, so she’s worthless, in that regard—”
Jake’s eyes burned hot with fury. “You’re wrong. Dead wrong.” He looked at Lainie. “It’s time we go, darlin’. Do you want to get anything of yours before we head out?”
His defense of her made Lainie’s heart constrict. No one had ever taken up for her before, and for someone to say such a thing to her mother was nigh on unthinkable! But it was so, so sweet to hear. She turned toward the back of the wagon. As she made her way to where she kept her sparse wardrobe of worn clothing, the baby began to fuss again.
She knelt, pulling out a tattered pasteboard box from under her narrow bunk and opened it. The box contained the only worldly treasures she’d ever owned. Somehow, the trinkets seemed childish to her now. The mantle of responsibility had settled with certainty upon her shoulders when she’d picked the baby up out of the basket and held him close to her bosom. He had belonged to her from that moment.
She shook her head, remembering her mother’s demand to put him back…condemn him to death.
It was easy to see her mother had already searched through the paltry belongings that had been so dear to Lainie—and taken anything that might have had the slightest value. Was that her idea of love, then?
“We’re leaving,” she whispered softly to the child. “And we’re never, ever coming back here.”
She stood, pulling some of her clothing from where she had stored it, noticing a few pieces of it missing as well.
Hot fury slid over her. Her mother had wasted no time in selling or bartering Lainie’s possessions. Lainie couldn’t bear to think on how little her mother had seemed to care for her. Stuffing her clothing into her pillowcase, she started back to the door.
“—good for nothing, here in the circus world, young man. She has no talents—”
“Enough!” Jake roared.
Lainie arrived in the front room just in time to see her mother step back and blink at Jake’s outburst.
“You have no idea of your daughter’s worth, Mrs. Barrett. And as for not having any of your ‘witching blood’—I think she discovered her own gift today.”
Lainie gulped. Was he bluffing? What could it be—this “gift” he referred to?
Her mother stood glaring at im defiantly, as if she, too, suspected he wasn’t being completely honest.
“What would that be, Mr. Diamond?” There was a hint of hopeful curiosity in Zelda’s tone.
“She found the baby, when no one else on earth could have. We’d passed by the trail that led down to the creek—”
“You found the child by water?” Zelda clasped her hand to her throat. “Oh, saints—”
“What the hell does that have to do with any damn thing?”
“It’s bad luck!” Zelda turned to face Lainie. “You know that, but you rescued the baby anyway!”
“Mama, anyone could’ve put him out there! It wasn’t his fault!”
“It’s the devil’s work!”
“Yes! I agree! Anyone who would put a baby out in the winter wind to die is a demon. Satanic. And—and you asking me to return him there—” She couldn’t say it. She broke off as Zelda’s eyes glittered. “Mama, I don’t know you anymore…”
“You are not my daughter any longer!”
Lainie gave a quick nod. “I reckon I’m not, Mama. I could never do what you’ve asked. It isn’t in me to be so cruel-hearted.”
“Time you leave,” Zelda muttered.
Jake took Lainie’s arm. “Past time. Let’s get out of this hellhole.”
Chapter 6
Once they were back in Fort Worth, Lainie procured a clean rag and a can of warmed milk from the clerk’s wife, Mrs. Broadner, at The Silver Palace.
She sat in a chair before a fresh-laid fire in their room, dipping the corner of the rag in the milk and letting the baby suck it. How she wished for a bottle of some kind to get the fluid into him faster.
Jake had gone to return the carriage. He planned to stop by the mercantile for supplies for the baby on his way back to the hotel.
Secretly, Lainie wondered what he might come home with; but for now, she was content to sit in the chair in front of the small fireplace that Mr. Broadner had sent a young man up to lay and light for her, as the baby sucked on the edge of the milk rag.
She hoped Jake would come back with something they could use for a bottle…and diapers.
It occurred to Lainie she had been so certain the baby was a boy, she hadn’t even checked to be sure. How had she known? A shiver tickled her neck. Her mother had called the baby a changeling, but all she felt was love, and a sure feeling that he belonged with her.
Once Jake got home, she’d give the child a bath and get him into clean clothes. This little one would never want for the basic needs of life as long as she could provide for him.
She smiled down at him. “You need a name, sweet boy. With Christmas just past, perhaps it should be something that has to do with this wonderful time of year. Chris? Nicholas? Noel?” She laughed as he wrinkled his nose. “Not fond of Noel, huh?”
The door creaked open and Jake came inside, carrying a pasteboard box that was packed with baby items.
“Mrs. Broadner said to let you know that the hot water you requested is almost ready, and she has an oversized water basin she’ll send up with it to use for a tub.”
“Thanks, Jake.”
“Seems you’ve thought of everything.”
She glanced up at him quickly. “I just want to cry every time I think of him being abandoned out there in the cold. How frightened he must have been, and how he must have suffered—”
“Ah, don’t, sweetheart. Don’t.” Jake had set the crate down beside the chair where Lainie sat with the baby. He knelt and put a hand on her arm, looking up into her face intently. “Think of what you did, instead. Figuring out where he was, getting to him in time to save him—and making the commitment you did to keep him safe.”
“I’ve been thinking of my mother.” Lainie looked away. “I can’t bear to believe she’d be so heartless. She wouldn’t even give me a drop of milk for him!”
Jake’s fingers tightened on her elbow. “I know.”
She met his eyes once more.
“She doesn’t deserve you, Lainie,” Jake said quietly. “I’m not sure how you turned out as beautifully loving and sweet as you did, being raised by—someone like her. But you did it in spite of her—not because of her.”
Lainie gave him a faint, uncertain smile. “I love you for saying so, Jake.”
“I love you, too, Lainie. Don’t ever change. And don’t…don’t look back.”
“As you said, I think I found my ‘witchly calling’—on the bright side of things,” she said, trying to lighten the seriousness that clouded the room.
Jake smiled. “Damn if you didn’t, sweetheart.” He touched the baby’s cheek, and the child sucked on the rag, watching him steadily. “This little tiger would have met his end if you hadn’t found him. No one else could have done what you did. You saved him. I’d still be out there, wandering around—”
Just then, a knock sounded on the door.
“Come in,” Jake called, rising.
Mrs. Broadner sailed into the room, directing two young men to follow. One of them carried two pails of steaming water; the other, the oversized basin.
Mrs. Broadner removed the regular basin and pitcher from the stand and the young man placed the larger basin on the flat surface.
She picked up one of the pails of water and grabbed a handful of apron, using it to tip the pail and pour the water into the basin, leaving space to add some cool water from the pitcher.
“We’ll fix that little love up,” she cooed as she worked, pouring the water from the pitcher in to temper it. She waved the young men out of the room, and turned to Lainie.
“All ready for him, Mrs. Diamond. Poor little love.” She came to stand over t
he baby, looking down at him. “Who would desert a baby?” She clucked, shaking her head at the shame of it all. “He’s lucky to be going to such a lovely little family. What have you named him?”
“We haven’t—” Lainie began.
“Jacob,” Jake said quickly, his gaze locking with Lainie’s. “If—you have no objection.”
She nodded wordlessly, her heart too full to say a thing. Tears filled her eyes, and she looked down at the baby.
Jake wanted to give the baby his name! Oh, what greater gift could there be? And by doing so, he was making a solemn pledge to her that they were going to share a future together.
Mrs. Broadner took her leave, and Jake shut the door and locked it behind her.
Lainie stood, laying the baby on the bed and unwrapping the towel she’d swathed him in to warm him as she fed him.
She picked him up and walked to the bath basin, testing it before she immersed him in the warm water.
“May I help? Is there something I can do?”
“I’ll need some soap—”
“Got it right here.” Jake plucked it from the box and began to unwrap the paper. Then, he took a soft piece of cloth and handed it to her along with the soap. “They only had rose-scented…he won’t stand for that in a few years!” He chuckled at the thought.
Lainie smiled. “Um…can you lather it for me?” She held the baby’s head carefully elevated. His eyes were shut, now that he had a bit of food in him, and was warm.
“Sure.” Jake came close, moistening the cloth and soaping it, then handing it to her. “Kind of an odd angle—this stand is sort of high—”
“Yes. We’ll make it as quick as possible.” Lainie soaped the baby’s head, neck, ears and fingers.
“So tiny…” Jake breathed. “We’ll be here for you, son. Don’t you ever doubt it.”
Lainie glanced up at him, the wonder in his expression tightening her throat.
“So sweet,” she said, bending to kiss the baby’s forehead to hide her own emotion. She rinsed him and dried him, then dressed him in the gown and diaper that Jake drew from the box. The baby slept through it all.
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